Probe panels, impeachment bid: Justice Yashwant Varma resigns amid cash recovery row

Nearly a year after stacks of alleged unaccounted cash surfaced at his official residence in Delhi following a fire, Allahabad High Court Justice Yashwant Varma has resigned. Varma's impeachment proceedings were gathering momentum in Parliament.

His resignation, sent to the President, comes as more than 140 Lok Sabha members backed a motion seeking his removal, marking a decisive turn in one of the judiciary’s most closely watched controversies.

The controversy dates back to March last year, when a fire broke out at Justice Yashwant Varma’s official residence in Delhi. During firefighting operations, stacks of cash, some reportedly over 1.5 feet high, were said to have been found at the site.

Following the incident and the public outcry, the then Chief Justice of India, Sanjiv Khanna, ordered an in-house inquiry and transferred Justice Varma from the Delhi High Court to the Allahabad High Court. His judicial work was withdrawn pending the probe.

Justice Varma, however, has denied the allegations, maintaining that no cash was recovered from his residence.

“Why should I be impeached?”: Varma’s defence

In his response to a parliamentary panel, Justice Varma said he was not present at the residence when the fire broke out and was not the first responder.

“Why should I be impeached if officials failed to secure the site... The police and fire department officials present failed to take action as required,” he told the panel, according to sources.

He argued that the site was under the control of authorities present at the time and questioned how he could be held responsible for any alleged lapse.

Probe panel and Supreme Court setback

In August 2025, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla constituted a three-member committee under the Judges (Inquiry) Act, 1968, to examine the allegations.

The panel includes Justice Aravind Kumar of the Supreme Court, Justice Maninder Mohan, Chief Justice of the Madras High Court, and senior advocate BV Acharaya.

Justice Varma challenged the validity of the panel before the Supreme Court, arguing that the motion seeking his removal had been rejected by the Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha.

The Supreme Court, however, dismissed his plea, allowing the parliamentary committee to proceed with its inquiry.